The Way Will Come but Once
by Lamea
Summary: Gilbert finds out that Vincent wants to erase his existence, and it tears him up inside. He has to find a way to convince his brother not to follow through with his plans before it's too late.


******This story isn't following anything specific from the manga. Some parts may follow the story line, but others probably won't.****  
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**Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Pandora Hearts. The story and the characters all belong to Jun Mochizuki. **

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What was he supposed to do? This wasn't the first time Gilbert had asked himself that question, especially when it came to his brother, but now he really needed an answer. The sense of urgency was so strong that Gilbert had to get up and pace the room or else he felt like he would explode. How had he not seen the signs? How had he let his little brother fall into such a state of mind where Vincent believed the best thing he could do was disappear, to erase his very existence?

Long fingers fumbled for a cigarette before bringing it up, a little shakily, to Gilberts lips. "Gil?" Oz asked from across the room but Gilbert didn't hear him. All the Nightray could hear were his own thoughts. He brought up his lighter and had been about use it when someone grabbed his arm. "Gil!" Oz said firmly as he held onto his servants arm. "What's the matter with you?" he asked sounding concerned.

Gilbert turned his head to look at Oz, his gaze a little bewildered. "What do you…" Gilbert had started to ask, only then realizing he had a cigarette dangling from his lips. He hastily removed the cigarette and shoved it back into the pack with the others. He never smoked inside with Oz in the same room because of the health hazards, but he didn't think that was what the blond boy had been referring to. "..I was just thinking." he said a little too quickly.

"Well that's obvious." Oz said as he rolled his eyes, but his face fell back into a serious expression soon after. "You were going to wear a groove in the floor with all that pacing. I've never seen you do that before, so I want to know." Oz said with a frown. "Tell me what's bothering you, I've been asking all day." Oz demanded making Gilbert feel ashamed. Gilbert didn't remember Oz asking him about it all day, but he _had _been pretty lost in thought so he could have missed it.

"I'm really sorry Oz." Gilbert said, apologizing for having ignored Oz earlier. He really was sorry, but he still didn't want to explain everything to the blond. Oz would most likely yell at him for not having paid enough attention to Vincent. Oh god, Vincent. Really, what was he going to do? It certainly wasn't going to be easy, but he had to do _something_ or his brother was as good as gone already.

"Hey! You're doing it again Gil!" Oz huffed in a pouting manner. "What won't you just tell me? You're going to make me start guessing." the blond said as he folded his arms, causing Gilbert to panic a little bit. If Gilbert didn't tell Oz what was wrong then he was going to bully the answer out of him one way or another. Break was going to be returning with Alice soon and he didn't want them to hear Oz ask him something embarrassing because then they would join in. With that threat over his head, how could Gilbert not tell Oz?

"Alright, alright." Gilbert said with a sigh as he tried to ignore Oz's triumphant grin. He really didn't want to talk about it, but if he had to he might as well do it while he still had some time before that stupid rabbit returned.. "It's about Vincent." Gilbert said with a frown. Gilbert found himself drifting off again into the deeper parts of his mind before he snapped himself out of it. This was going to be a lot harder than he thought.

"Well?" Oz said, waiting, but waiting very impatiently. Gilbert looked over at him, trying to convince himself that it was okay to tell Oz. He trusted Oz with everything, so it was rude for him to even question if he should tell him or not. It was something he had to do. Gilbert sighed before he continued.

"The last time I went to go see Vincent didn't go very well. He was in one of his moods, and he looked horribly depressed. I had tried to talk to him, but that didn't go well either." Gilbert said, deciding to leave out the part where his brother had brought up Oz. Vincent had been bitter when he mentioned that Gilbert spent all of his time with Oz. "I said something I shouldn't have." Gilbert added, remembering all to well the painful look that had crossed Vincent's face, and the raw guilt he had felt. "When we continued to talk, Vincent, he…well he, he let something slip" Gilbert said a little shakily, that horrible guilty feeling coming back ten fold.

"What did he say?" Oz asked, his eyes looking interested, but in a concerned way. Gilbert felt terrible, he felt like the worst person on earth for having caused his brother to think that way. "..he wants to erase his existence…" Gilbert said softly, low being the only pitch he could manage. He could see the look of surprise on Oz's face, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything else on the topic. Gilbert was starting to feel the urge to pace again, and he probably would have if Oz hadn't grabbed his arm again.

Oz looked very thoughtful for a long moment before he looked up again. "Do you know why he wants to? I don't think it's just because of what you said your last visit." Oz said, looking sure of his words. "Even though you left some things out, I can still be sure that isn't the reason." Oz finished and Gilbert shook his head.

"I don't know why he would ever want to do something like that, but isn't it bad enough that he wants to?" Gilbert asked Oz, needing some form of advice that could help him. Gilbert couldn't just walk up to Vincent and ask him why he wanted to disappear, and he had no idea on where to even start looking for a reason on his own. The only thing Gilbert was sure of, was that it had to do with him, it just had to. Oz was right, it probably wasn't what he said to Vincent, but it still was caused by him. "I have to find out, and I have to convince him not to do it…" he said through the guilt.

"You don't even know if it's possible for him to do it Gil, so we have that at least." Oz said, looking like he was going back to thinking. "What's the 'we' for?" Gilbert asked, looking a little confused. Oz just chuckled at him. "I'm going to help you find a way to help your brother, so it would only be right to say 'we'." Oz said like it was the simplest thing in the world and Gilbert was being stupid.

"I think this is something I should do myself." Gilbert said with a frown, even though he was grateful for Oz to offer his help. "Don't be silly, I'm going to help you whether you want it or not." Oz said in a matter of fact tone as he let go of Gilberts arm. "You're right though, most of the work is going to have to come from you, but I'll help you try and figure things out." Oz said with a smile. "So try and relax a little. You won't be able to think straight the way your acting." Oz finished.

Maybe Oz was right, but Gilbert couldn't see how he could relax after knowing what his brother was thinking. He would just have to work through the guilt and find a way to help Vincent, whether Vincent wanted the help or not. Just the idea that Vincent might not want any help scared Gilbert. He just couldn't idly sit by and watch as things went from bad to worse, he _would _find a way, there wasn't any room for failure. He had just sat by and let things get this bad already, and he would make sure he never did it again.


End file.
